Improved submarine rock-drilling machine



fatina sans @tout @titille S.. FRANKLIN SOHOVONMAKEILOF NEW YORK, N. Y,

Letters Patent No. 96,735, dated November 9, 1869; antedated November 3, 1869.

IMPROVED SUBMARINE ROCK-DRILLING- MACHINEl The Schedule referred to in these Letters Patent and making part of the same.

To whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, S. FRANKIJN SonooxnAKnn, of the city, county, and State of New York, have invented a .new and useful Apparatus for Drilling or `Perforating Rocks' Under Water; and I hereby declare that .the hereinafter-contained representation is a true and exact description thereof, reference being had tothe accompanying drawings, numbered Figures 1', 2, and 3, on sheets 1 and 2.

The object sought to be attained by this invention is to render the process of blasting submarine rock (which has heretofore beenv uncertain, difiicult, and' almost impracticable, on account of the enormous expense,) cert-aimand as practicable, and nearly ais cheap as blasting on land. A

Heretofore steam-power has not been used in drilling holes in submarinerock. perhaps because of the difficulty of securingthe stability of the machinery involved, except by the employment of extensive framing, with the necessityof tearing away the whole structure when the blast isto be exploded.

It has been sought, in this invention, to combine in one machine the necessary parts to the employment of' steam-power, so that the. power and the" means of transmitting it to the point to be" operated upon should be invariable to e'ach other, and, at the same,

time, making its application possible and practicable by the use of other parts, to render the perfect stability and steadiness of' the whole attainable.

In Qrder that others familiar with the operations connected with blasting may be` able to understand, constructand use the machinery or apparatus of` my invention,reference is iliade, in my explanation thereof, to the drawings -hereto belonging, where, in sheet 1, 1 have given a perspective view of' the more desirable ,form of the whole machine and, in sheet 2, I have given, in fig. 2, a vertical section of' the body of the machine represented in perspective in fig. 1; and, in Figure 3, I have given a perspective of' a cylindrical support or body which'may be advantageously employed in certain situations or in particular cases.

On sheet 1 p AA represent the body of the machine, which is made of boiler-iron, or boiler-iron with a cast-iron enlargement for the base, in which case the base will have a diameter, inside, of abou-t four feet, while the upper portion of the body may be about two feet two inches. The base casting may be iliade thick, to give weight to the lower end of the body. 4

'lwo doorspl and l', fig. 2, sheet 2, are fitted to the body, one near the top and thc other at the enlarged port-ion, near the bottom.

A stufing-box, E, fig. 1, is fitted on the enlarged portion of the body,.to receive through it the outer tube, m, of the drill-shaft.

Near the upper end of the body A are firmly riveted lugs or projections 'i if, which are preferably welded on a wrought-iron ring or band encircling the body, and strongly riveted to it.

These lugs or projections i 'i form support-s for the columns hy lt h, to which is firmly attached the enginefiame j.

rlhe engine C is a small rotary one, the shaft rof which is also the shaft of the rotary air-pump l),

which has, therefore, the same cent-re of motion as the said engine.

The outer tube m of the drill-shaft passes, near its-` upper end,through a journal-box,f, and down through the stuiing-box E into the enlarged portion of' the body of the machine.

This tube has a mitrewheel gearing at its upper end, by which it receives a rotary motion' from the engine c There are two mitre-wheels at the upper end ofthe drill-shaft, one of' which is not shown in the drawings,

either of which, by 4means of' a clutch-arrangement, is

put in. gear with the engine atpleasure, thus reversing the motion of the drill.

A small tube, a, is carried down the'centre of' the tube m, and, being rigidly secured in the top of the tube on, it passes upward through the axes of' the mitre-wheels, and is fitted with a small stuffing-box, o. lhe portion below the said stuffing-box revolves with the tube m, while, to the portion above, which is stationary, a short, flexible tube is attached to supply water to the drill below, through the said tube u.

It will 'be seen, on referring to fig; 2, sheet 2, that there are two other tubes, S and l), within the tube m. The offices of these tubes will now be explained. Within the enlargement of the body A, and attached to one side of it, is a double bracket, q. v

The upper support of this bracket f'o'rms a bearing for the lower end of the tube m, which first passes through it, downward.

Firmly fixed on the tube fm, and resting on the npper support ofthe bracket, is a gear-wheel, t.

This wheel t causes to revolve another wheel, n, fixed upon a short shaft, Iw, the upper end' of which has al bearing in` the upper support of the bracket, while the lower end carries a gear-wheel, yr, having a bearing in the lower supportot' the'bra-cket.

lhe tube s is about four feet long, and has a-thread cut upon it. It slidcsvfie'ely up or ,down within the tube on, but has a groove cut down its length, across the threads, and a feather within the lower end ofthe tube on, working in this groove, causes the tube s t-o revolve uniformly with the tube m. v v i The lower support of the vbracket q has fitted in it a wheel, lr, in suoli a manner that the said wheel is free t'o revolve in a horizontal direction, but has no protect. the lives of those who are often descend many feet below the surface of the water, as-

` machine.

motion upward from the bracket, because of a collar which projects outward below the bracket'from the bearing ofthe wheel.

The axis of this wheel 'r has a thread in it, which takes the thread on the tube s.

It will be seen that by thev revolution of the tube lm., carrying the wheel t, motion isfcommunicated to the equal-wheel a, and, through it, to the wheel 1:,'on the lowerextremity of the'same shaft with it.

The wheel v communicates motion 'to the wheel fr, which, beingslightly larger than the equal-wheels c, u, and t, revolves in the same direction as, but more slowly than the wheel t.

This retard ofthe motion of the wneel fr causes the threaded tubes to advance'slowly downward, while, by means of the groove and feather, it has the same rotary motion as the tube on. v

The tube s is fitted, at its lower end,- with pins 1 ,.or a chuck, by which it grasps firmly alight, smooth tube, p, which passes upward and downward through it.

This tube p is the immediate tube, to which, at its lower end, is fixed the ring, stock, or tool containing the diamonds, or is fitted with other hard minerals for boring the rock.

By means of' the pins' or chuck y, the drill can be extended or lctout, downward from the vtube s, as the hole being drilled becomes of increasingr depth.

\Vater to wash away the drill from the top of the machine, through the alreadydescribed small tube u.

This tube passes down within the tube p, extending downward as lowas, or 'a little lower than the lower' support ofthe bracket.

It has fitted to its lower end a conical leather mouth, x, by which, under the pressure of the Water passing downward through it, it hugs the interior of the tube p, and prevents the escape of the water at that point, thus causing the water to passdown within` the tube p to the cutting-edges of the tool at its lower eX- tremity.

rl`he body A A of the machine is provided with adjusting-screws z z z, which are used, when the body stands on rugged or shelving rock, t) fix its rest and steady-the working ofthe drill.

An indispensable requisite in apparatus or structures for operating in water of considerable depth, is a Vgreat stability. This is absolutely necessary, not only to required to in coder-dams, and in' excavations for sinking cylinders for bundations by the atmospheric system, but also to secure certainty of operation, and avoid the great delay and still greater expense attending the collapse or carrying away of the'structnre or apparatus.

In operating upon submarine rock, which is usually a ridge or series of' ridges or reefs, and often exceedingly irregular, if it is sought to give to the body of the machine or apparatus, within which the water is to be excluded by air-pressure, a sufficient breadth of base to realize the proper stability, thewhole, to overcome the buoyancy of the wat-er, must be of vgreat weight and unwieldy proportions, so as to become, in effect, a structure, instead of an icient and portable Besides, in such cases, the base, having no means of accommodating, itself to the irregularity of' the rock, except by inciining the whole structurefrom a perpendicular, in proportionto the. degree of shelving or inclination of the rock itself', the use of such apparatus upon submarine roclrvhas been so nearly impracticable,'.tliat the operation of submarine drilling has been a work quite too bold for contractors to ulldertake with any reliability of either effort or estimate.

To reduce such apparatus to a machine, light and readily portable, capable of an upright position, whatever may be the irregularity of the rock, and with a stability which insures steadiness and security, the body debris is supplied to the A is guardedly made a cylinder of small diameter, even at the base, while at its top it may be reduced toa size only sufficient to permit the entrance or exit of the workman who operates the machine.

To this body, at its base, are rmly secured the curved arms d :l d.

These arms have holes d d d through them, at a distance from the body A, horizontally, of' six feet,

more or less.

Through these holes d ll stays a a a of' the machine.

These legs themselves are stifened by the braces b b 1),' through the medium of' the cross-braces c c c.

The braces b b b freely slide through the slots b b b', in the noses of the arms d d (l.4 i

At the lower extremity of the legs 'a a, a are attached heavy weights B B B. These weights are preferably made of a shell of cast-'iron and l to admit of being made either lighter or heavier, according to the requirements of the situation or the strength of the current of the water. may be from one-half to two tous, more or less.

The upper-extremities ofthe legs a a a are formed with joints g'g thimbles f f f.

These thimbles hold frnil which slide vertically through the eyes e e'e e e e.A

These eyes e e e e e e are securely attached to the body A, or to wrought-.iron rings encircling it.

The eyes, near the top of the body A, are fitted with bindingsorews, which are screwed inward against the sliding bars k k 7;.

WVhen the machine has been placed upon the rock, and the legs a a a, with the weights B B B, have accommodated themselves to the irregularities of the d' slide freely the legs or to its position, or moved from one position to another, by means of chains, through the agency of clevises attached to the upper extremities of the slidng'bars k k k.

Fig. 3, sheet 2, represents a columnar and tubular support for the drill and its necessary machinery, which is not provided with doors, as is the body A, in iig. 2, at Z and l'. In this case it is not intended to exclude the wat-er, as in figs. 1 and 2. v

The engine and drilling-apparatus are fitted with a revolving base upon the upper end of the column A', and the drill is swung round, at pleasure, over the tube R R, and worksdownward through it.

The tube RB may be xed, by the straps o o' o', either outside or inside of the column A, which is cut away at its bottom, as shownatt, for the purpose of allowing the proper insertion of the charge into the hole, and preparing it for firing.

umn A', unexposed to the violence of thecurrent, and with the ease andcertainty of charging the blast quickly and efficiently.

may be used, as in fig. 1,y sheet l..

The operation of the machine, as shown in figs. 1 and 2, will be readily understood.

The air-pump I) has a'tube connecting it with the lower part of the interior of the body A.

.The door l having been closed previous to lowering the machine, the upper part of the body A is already full of air.

When the macl1ine,suspended from a derrick built upon ascow or barge, has been lowered upon the rock; and the binding-screws, in the eyes e e e, set, the workmandescends into the body A, and closes the door l.

Steam is admitted to the engine by a flexible conductorfrom the barge or scow, and the drill being disconnected, the air-pump is set in action, driving out the water from the base of the body A.

The workman first opens a cock, to equalize the air led with lead, so as Their weightA g, by which they are attached to the y the sliding bars' k k k,

bottom, the whole machine is suspendedaud lowered- Y lTo accomplish this, a diver descends within' the coli Legs, eachwith independent means of adjustment,

between the upper and lower parts of the-body A, and,

the purpose speciiied.

dlill, fitted with diamond cutting-edges, upon or within.

a tube, open or otherwise, one end of which rests upon or near the rock to be dril1ed,whi1e the other extends above the surface of the water, in manner aseand for 2. A tube or hollow cylinder, when forming a base or support for a steamor other motor exigirle, the two being combined in a fixed relation to each other, and v forming parts of a submarine rock-drilling machine, substantially as and for the purpose specitied.

wat

3. The combination of Ithe engine, hollow cylinder,l and a rotary d rill, when related to each other, and operating in manner and effect substantially as shown.

4. Providing the lower end of the-said hollow cylinder with adj usting-screws, in effect' as, andfor the purpose herein explained.'

5. In apparatus for submarine operations, a tripod lor mnltipod, whose legs, inclining inward and upward toward eachother, have each independent means of adjustment, vertically, insnbstane as shown.

6. In submarine rock-drilling apparatus, adjustable legs, when havingr anchors or Weights attached at our near their lower extremities, substantially. as and forl the purpose specified.

S. FRANKLIN SCHOONMAKER.

' Witnesses: l AN. JOHNSTON, A. MARTiN. 

